COLA, SSI

An Increase in Social Security Benefits in 2017

October 18, 2016 • By

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Last Updated: March 17, 2021

cola2017The annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) usually means an increase in the benefit amount people receive each month. By law, the monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) federal benefit rate increases when there is a rise in the cost of living. The government measures changes in the cost of living through the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI-W).

The CPI-W rose this year. When inflation increases, your cost of living also goes up. Prices for goods and services, on average, are a little more expensive.  Since the CPI-W did rise, the law increases benefits to help offset inflation. As a result, monthly Social Security and SSI benefits for over 65 million Americans will increase 0.3 percent in 2017.

Other changes that would normally take effect based on changes in the national average wage index will begin in January 2017. For example, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security payroll tax will increase to $127,200.

Information about Medicare changes for 2017, when announced, will be available at www.Medicare.gov.  For some beneficiaries, their Social Security increase may be partially or completely offset by increases in Medicare premiums.

You can find more information about the 2017 COLA at www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.  For changes in the national average wage index, go to www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/COLA/AWI.html.

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About the Author

Doug Walker, Deputy Commissioner, Communications

Deputy Commissioner, Office of Communications

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Comments

  1. Jo

    Since our medicare premiums will go up for 2017 and only 0.03% increase in pay , i guess nothing is changing and we won’t be seeing a raise at all. This is so sad for us that have worked for over 40 years

    • R.F.

      Hi Jo. Should there be an increase in the Medicare Part B premium, the law contains a “hold harmless” provision that protects approximately 70 percent of Social Security beneficiaries from paying a higher Part B premium, in order to avoid reducing their net Social Security benefit. Information about Medicare changes for 2017, when announced, will be available at http://www.Medicare.gov.

      • MrBubble

        How about the other 30 percent of us? How many people is that Ray?

    • RCH

      With the Medicare increase, my benefits are exactly the same as last year. My raise went 100% to the Medicare increase.

  2. Chris

    The increase is only .3%. For some that is only $2 to $5 a month. That does nothing to help someone on a fixed income.

  3. Sam B.

    Wow! I’ll get $4.78 more a month and it comes out to $57.31 for the entire year. Most recipients will get $2.00, so maybe I should call myself lucky.

  4. Pete

    I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. It’s time for price and rent caps!!!

  5. Joe F.

    It’s going to be a very long year with a .03% increase. Nothing more to say…

    • Sam B.

      .003%.

  6. Jerry

    The biggest fraud committed against those of us on Social Security is the fact that the Government borrow money from our “self-funded” Trust. It should be over $2 Trillion dollars but it’s not. The time has come for our Government to stop sending Trillions of tax payers money to Foreign governments and refund out Trust Fund FIRST. Once that is completed Social Security will then become a solvent Trust again. AMERICA FIRST! Then let the tax payer’s decide which other governments get money if they chose to do so. Enough of our Representatives in Congress deciding who to give money to! SO SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION TIME FOR YOU TO SPEAK UP!!

    • R.F.

      Jerry, Social Security is a pay-as-you-go system. Social Security taxes collected from today’s workers pay the benefits of today’s retirees. Any funds in excess of what is needed to pay today’s benefits are invested in special issue, U.S. Government, interest-bearing securities. This investment – the purchase of U.S. Government securities – is what constitutes the “borrowing” that people are sometimes concerned about. Any funds that have been “borrowed” from the Social Security Trust Funds have always been paid back in full, plus interest. Please check out our Trust Fund Frequently Asked Questions page for more information.

  7. Jack M.

    I used to get a $.60 hourly raise every year when I was working, so that’s about $24 a week or $96 a month, but social security isn’t about to give us that even in a year.

  8. James R.

    Man, it seems none of these politician think they will not get old and sick. I was part of the group that put together the zip plus 4 program, with a title of Senior Computer Scientist working out of the Long Island USPS Sales office, and because the Director (that closet queen) and Asst. Director felt that the Supervisory Staff should go and pick out modular desk at a USPS back warehouse (which by the way the union USPS workers did not enjoy supervisors to go into a warehouse and do work that they do, so they piled these desk or panels at least 1 1/2 stories high) So when we tried to get one of the panels the entire stack fell over, almost trapping all of us. We then start to grab panels to place them into a truck, and I grabbed the front of a 16 foot panel that weigh a ton, an express mail supervisor grabbed the other end, but misjudged the weight and dropped his end which pulled my back and I have been disabled ever since. This happened in 1988, The Directors that ordered us, got promoted, I lost my home in 1990 cause NYWC only gave me 300.00 a month my long term disability gave me 600.00 a month, my bills totaled 1,800.00 plus a month and in 1997 I finally got on SSD. However once I got my SSD the long term insurance kept bugging me to get more and more doctor reports and they kept offering me a buy out for 15,000.00 so I took the buy out because I just could not keep going to doctors every other day, keep in mind I only had SSD and WC which just going to the doctors was giving me more pain on my back and stress-out, so much I had a heart attack. So the COLA’s meant a great deal to me, when Obama said no Cola because things were getting better. I asked myself Where !!! Cause the GAS kept going up not down, well yeah two days of the week it went down five cents… but what is five cents really… I was making on the Job just about 90k per year, now my combined yearly income from WC and SSD is 22k a year and most of that goes on Gas, and Pills.. I’m still going to doctors… and my self pride is shot to nothing I feel worthless.. I can’t sit, stand, walk, and crawl so my knowledge of systems has gone and today I’m like a model T in a world of advance systems, so I can’t even get a part time job to supplement my Federal and Local Govt income. Oh yeah a Law Suit… well I tried that during the 1989 – 1994 and all, and I mean all the supervisors that were there no less than two feet away (were threaten by the Directors not to say anything) so they told the USA Attorney they did not see a thing… Great huh… and I am a US Navy Vet. but since I am not service connected (meaning I did not get hurt as a Serviceman) I can get to see Doctors but I still pay and pay for meds also, but to go to the VA it’s a big hassle, driving far away, bills from the VA for visits to Doctors and for each Pill they give you and they don’t stop with the bills and the collections, tried them, and cant deal with it, rather see local Doctor. So when the COLA is issued please calculate the cost of Gas, Food and Rent now since I can’t ever pay a Mortgage anymore. I hope that all those Postal Supervisors from Long Island NY understand that I am still in this mess and without any great funds, basically living in poverty, so Thank You my Co-Workers for not coming forward maybe if you all see this post you can find it in your heart to write to the USA Attorney in Washington and tell the truth so maybe you can sleep well…. and maybe God will Open the gates for you when it’s your time for finally coming forward.

  9. Johnny S.

    Hello we are going to receive a 3% increase we are going to receive .03% that is just a little more than a 1/4 of a percent in other words were all are receiving the shaft!!!

  10. Johnny S.

    What a joke .03% my medicare cost is $114.00 per month my part D prescription cost me $81.60 per month for 2016 my part D almost doubled from 2015 to 2016. COLA is a joke All politicians are Corrupt as far as I am concerned they can stick this COLA increase where the sun don’t shine. I have no confidence in crooked Hillary or lying Trump. Hillary just wants to make History an Trump wants power, since they both are wealthy. They both just want power and they don’t give a damn about the poor or the middle class

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